INA-source

Chilean voters resoundingly rejected a new, progressive constitution in a referendum on Sunday, following a nearly two-year process that aimed to reflect a broader array of voices in the nation's document.

With almost all of the ballots counted, 62% of voters rejected the proposal with 38% voting in favor, according to the Chile Electoral Service.

The proposed constitution, which had the support of leftist President Gabriel Boric, included 388 articles that would have significantly extended social rights, increased environmental regulation and given the government wider responsibility for social welfare programs. It also would have provided full gender parity and added designated seats for indigenous representatives.

The document was rejected in all of Chile's provinces, including the more progressive capital of Santiago and its metropolitan area, where voters had overwhelmingly supported Boric last December during the presidential election.

Boric responded to the defeat in a live televised address to the nation after the close of polling on Sunday.

"Today the people of Chile have spoken, and they have done so loudly and clearly," Boric said. "They have given us two messages. The first one is that they love and value their democracy ... The second one is that the people of Chile was not satisfied with the proposed constitution and, therefore, has decided to reject in a clear way at the polls."

Images from Santiago on Sunday show a sombre mood among supporters of the constitution, while others celebrated the news it had been voted down.

The constitution currently in place was written under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, who ruled Chile with an iron fist from 1973 to 1990. Proponents of the new constitution wanted a break from Chile's authoritarian past and a document that reflected the interests of communities that, according to them, had been ignored.

Source-CNN